Justin Wood

Justin is a coffee snob with a math degree and a penchant for languages. He thinks up haikus while driving, eats muesli every morning and does the daily crossword. Justin is a rock climber with a training addiction. And he is a vegan warrior.

Discipline: Bouldering

Hometown: Salt Lake City, UT

Currently Living: Salt Lake City, UT

Height: 5'10"

Career Highlights: Summers in Squamish, winters in Bishop, amazing trips to Fontainebleau, climbing at Flock Hill in New Zealand and taking advantage of any good fall conditions day in Little Cottonwood Canyon.

When did you first start climbing?

When I was 15, started with highball slabs in Little Cottonwood Canyon in my uncle's old EB hightops.

What do you most enjoy about your sport?

The physical and mental problem solving of bouldering. Working out moves and sending problems that at one time seemed impossible. Also, moments of “lifting the car off the baby” try-hard.

How do you define success?

Obviously, topping out on a boulder is a success, but any amount of learning and progressing is a success

What are you most proud of, either in life, your sport or both?

I'm proud to be on the board of the local climbers organization, the Salt Lake Climbers Alliance, helping to preserve climbing and improve climbing areas here in the Wasatch Front and Joe's Valley.

What inspires you?

Trying hard.

What are your hobbies outside of your sport?

Coffee drinking and crossword puzzle solving.

Tell us about your most favorite place in the world:

A wooded area filled with thousands of sandstone boulders, a rich history of climbing, cheap wine and a certain je ne sais quoi: Fontainebleau.

Tell us about a time in your life when you have been scared:

Multi-pitch climbing in Riglos, Spain. We were off-route and traversing around on the overhanging face of a chossy pillar and had to bail.